`Miami Vice` Is First Television Show To Make Chart History

November 08, 1985|By Jan DeKnock.

This week, the hit TV series ``Miami Vice`` made a little history on the pop charts, because it now has become the first television show to generate both a No. 1 single and a No. 1 album, and is also the first to have two singles in the Top 5 in the same week.

The singles` half of ``Miami`s`` double chart victory was scored by Jan Hammer`s instrumental theme, which as expected moved from its No. 2 position to knock off last week`s champion, Stevie Wonder`s ``Part-Time Lover,`` after just one week at No. 1.

That was not an easy victory, because ``Part-Time Lover`` is the kind of across-the-board winner that usually has a long run at No. 1 on the pop charts. In fact, it still is a champion on the black charts, where it is in its fourth week at No. 1, and on the adult contemporary list, where it has been No. 1 for three weeks.

But there was no stopping the ``Miami Vice Theme`` on the pop charts, and now there`s another song from the TV show that`s making a run at the top spot. That challenger is Glenn Frey`s ``You Belong to the City,`` which zipped from No. 6 to No. 4 this week and is still gaining in popularity.

The album half of ``Miami Vice`s`` chart ``double`` was accomplished last week, when the soundtrack LP jumped into the No. 1 slot ahead of Dire Straits` ``Brothers in Arms.``

This week, the ``Miami Vice`` album held on to its top ranking and now appears likely to rule the LP list until the end of the year. That`s because Stevie Wonder`s long-awaited ``In Square Circle`` has inexplicably stalled at No. 7 after quickly moving into the Top 10, and now won`t have enough momentum to even crack the Top 5 unless there is a strong follow-up single to the now-fading ``Part-Time Lover.``

The album to really watch in weeks to come is John Cougar Mellencamp`s

``Scarecrow,`` which has really picked up strength in recent weeks and now has a chance to make a move from its No. 3 position.

This week`s pick hit is John Cougar Mellencamp`s appealing ``Small Town,`` a strong follow-up to his recent No. 6 hit ``Lonely Ol` Night.`` Look for this track to do just as well with pop listeners--and win Mellencamp new fans in the adult contemporary crowd.